By NewsDesk  @bactiman63

The Institute of Public Health in Norway is reporting a Shigella sonnei outbreak that has sickened at least eight people in several counties across the country.

sugarsnaps
Sugar peas/Food Safety Authority

In early December 2019, several people became ill with gastrointestinal symptoms after eating in a canteen in Oslo. The bacterium Shigella sonnei was found in samples from 5 of the patients. The local outbreak was investigated in collaboration with the infection control superior and the Food Safety Authority in Oslo. Imported sugars from Kenya were likely sources of infection.

The sugars associated with the outbreak in Oslo were distributed to several parts of the country. The outbreak investigation shows that three people in Akershus and Hedmark have also been ill with the same bacteria. The eight people who have been diagnosed with the bacterium are aged 29 to 63 years.

The sugars from Kenya were labeled “Sugersnaps” or “Sugars”, 150 grams, packed by Springfresh and distributed in Norway by Bernhard Botolfsen Import AS. The sugars were packed in black containers covered with transparent plastic and marked with lot no.194819.

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It is believed that the suspected product is now off the market due to expiration. If consumers should still have the product, it should be discarded.

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